The new post of Deputy Chief Constable, Special Constabulary, has been created as the force attempts to significantly swell its ranks from around 300 to 500 officers.
Simon Anderson, previously Special Chief Inspector on Trent Valley Division, first became a Special Constable in Hertfordshire 21 years ago and transferred to Staffordshire 18 months later following a move in his day job.
The 40-year-old from Burton-on-Trent, who is a technical architect for South Staffordshire and Shropshire Foundation Trust’s Health Informatics Service, brings a wealth of experience to the post.
Married, with two children, Simon, who has recently completed the Special Constabulary senior leadership programme at Bramshill, said there are exciting and challenging times ahead for the volunteer force.
He said: “I am delighted to have been selected as the Deputy Chief Officer for the Special Constabulary.
“The Special Constabulary is a valued member of the Staffordshire Police family and I want to see it continue to go from strength to strength.
“The Specials will play an even greater part within the policing of Staffordshire over the coming years and I look forward to working with everyone to make this a success.
“I will use my experience within the constabulary as well as the skills the role has in common with my other job.
“I have been very much hands on in my work in Trent Valley division and a lot of the things we did to benefit the public were rolled out as best practice across the force.
“The changes being brought about by the restructuring of Staffordshire Police through the Communities First programme will have an indirect impact upon us.
“The challenge is to make sure we are utilised in the best way possible and I believe that will mean a more diverse remit. At the moment, we deal largely with volume crime, anti-social behaviour and vehicle crime.
“But there is fantastic scope, especially with increased numbers, to utilise the expertise of people from their day jobs for internal training to improve awareness of different areas of policing.
“Another main challenge is the Chief Constable’s intention to make Staffordshire the best force in the country in dealing with anti-social behaviour. We are heavily involved in this because our core hours are at evenings and weekends when the majority of anti-social behaviour takes place.”
Special Constables, or Specials, are volunteers drawn from local communities and perform invaluable work in keeping Staffordshire safe. They are responsible for helping the regular force ensure the demands of local communities and force objectives are met through interaction with the public.
Recruits come from a variety of occupations and backgrounds and there are currently more than 300 Specials working for Staffordshire Police.
They perform duties and exercise powers under the supervision of, and supported by regular police officers and provide a vital link between the regular force officers and the community.
The main focus of Special Constables is to provide a visible uniformed presence and tackle issues that affect a community’s feeling of well-being. They have the full range of police powers including making arrests and stop and search.
They make a significant contribution to tackling anti-social behaviour and public satisfaction with how the force deals with anti-social behaviour currently standing at a record high of 83 per cent.
Special Constables receive thorough training in different aspects of police work and receive an allowance for duties performed and travelling expenses.
They are expected to work a minimum of 16 hours per month but there are no set hours.
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